Turkey’s hot summer

By Evangelos Areteos

Turkey in front of a dilemma: Nationalism vs Democratization

The advancement of the Syrian Kurds in northern Syria and the expansion of a continuous geographical area under their control, from the river Tigris to Kobani, are emerging as a major catalysts for the internal political balances in Ankara, where the efforts for a coalition government are still heavily overshadowed by the prospect of early elections.

The advancement of the Syrian Kurdish forces have come in a very delicate moment for Turkey, and brought Ankara in front of an overwhelming dilemma: Nationalism and introspection vs. opening to the Kurds and to wider democratization.

The Syrian Kurdish forces have replaced ISIS along the Turkish border creating a continuous line under the control of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the strongest Kurdish party in Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava), politically and ideologically linked to the PKK.